Is Kid Age Automatically Sent to Restaurant?

[schalliol]

I have a very small girl who is a year outside the kid prices for most restaurants. She eats very little. Now, for buffet restaurants, I understand they'll want to charge her full price (as I just stomached for a Spirit of Aloha reservation for her), and she has full price tickets, etc.

If I book ADRs with her as one of the 5 in our party for a non-buffet restaurant, can she choose a kid meal? For example, I have the Brown Derby Fantasmic booked for $69.23 per adult, and she and we would prefer the $45.80 less kids meal. Thanks!

 

[_auroraborealis_]

If I book ADRs with her as one of the 5 in our party for a non-buffet restaurant, can she choose a kid meal? For example, I have the Brown Derby Fantasmic booked for $69.23 per adult, and she and we would prefer the $45.80 less kids meal. Thanks!

She will pay the adult price for all buffets, AYCTE and dining packages. I'm sure HBD will let her order the kids' meal, but she will pay $69.23 for it.

 

[jon18uk]

If you weren't doing the Fantasmic package you could order anything for her. But the package is a set price.

 

[schalliol]

Fair enough (though a bummer and kinda silly). To confirm, if you're using an ADR for a non-fixed price meal, you should be able to have the little kid order a kids meal and just be charged for the kids meal? Of course, I'm excluding where someone would think the kid is much older (she looks younger and is smaller than my 9 year old).

 

[cluvsdisney]

Disney is pretty lenient about anyone, even adults, ordering off the kid's menu at most restaurants that are not buffets/AYCTE, packages, dinner shows. For these restaurants, the value of the entertainment is included in the price so it's not flexible.

 

[schalliol]

Thanks, that makes sense. Glad to hear it!

 

[purple figment]

At TS restaurants where you order from a menu, anyone, even adults can order from the kids' menu. Once in a while someone will post that a server or restaurant (usually a third party restaurant) will adhere to the ages 3 - 9 that is on the menu, but that is rare.

Your daughter will be charged according to her age (10 or older) at all buffets, family style all you care to eat restaurants, dinner shows (Hoop De Doo, Spirit of Aloha Luau, Mickey's Backyard Barbecue), fixed price meals (e.g. Akershus, CRT), Fantasmic and Candlelight Processional Dining Packages, special events (e.g. dessert parties), and the family platter at Whispering Canyon Cafe.

For the fixed price meals or Dining Packages (e.g. Fantasmic) she can order from the kids' menu, but she will be charged the full price and not the kids' price.

 

[Queen of the WDW Scene]

Anywhere that is a fixed price you'll be paying the adult price for her.
At other restaurants anyone child or adult can order off the child menus and pay the price of the item they choose.
I myself on occasion have ordered from the child menu as an adult when I have found the adult offerings to be less than appealing.
I've never had a problem doing so.

 

[robinb]

Disney is pretty lenient about anyone, even adults, ordering off the kid's menu at most restaurants that are not buffets/AYCTE, packages, dinner shows. For these restaurants, the value of the entertainment is included in the price so it's not flexible.

Yup. We stopped going to those type of restaurants with my DD once she was a "Disney Adult" for that exact reason. We simply could not stomach paying adult prices for a kid that still ate like a kid! Unfortunately, the Fantasmic! restaurant seatings in one of them.

FWIW, I have NEVER had a Fantasmic! restaurant special seating and have always been able to see the show.

 

[Nancyg56]

Fair enough (though a bummer and kinda silly). To confirm, if you're using an ADR for a non-fixed price meal, you should be able to have the little kid order a kids meal and just be charged for the kids meal? Of course, I'm excluding where someone would think the kid is much older (she looks younger and is smaller than my 9 year old).

Disney does not want to be responsible for becoming the food police. The most fair way to manage all fixed price meals is to charge by age, and while your daughter may not eat enough to justify the cost, other 10 year olds would. Conversely, there are adults who have reasons that they do not consume the value of the meal charged, yet they must pay. There is no fool proof way to measure values.

 

[MakiraMarlena]

Fantasmic is a package, so you'll have to pay the going price for a 10 year old, regardless of what she actually eats.

If you went to BD without the package, you could likely order whatever she wanted and pay accordingly, but a package does not work that way.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

Unless you are looking at a holiday, you should be able to do F! standby if you want to save some money.

 

[schalliol]

Thanks so much everyone this is really helpful. They should just drop the age from the kids menu and stick with it for buffet or fixed price meals (ideally with an older age). Ultimately, very few 10 year olds are going to be eating a multi-course dinner and eating any reasonable portion of it. I understand why Disney does what it does.

We'll probably hit Hollywood Studios just one day, so we'll stick with the package for the time savings if we can get an ADR (since they haven't updated them for March and April yet), and she'll have a lot of good food to eat. Thanks again!

 

[denily]

I actually have an 11 year old with fairly expensive taste. He absolutely will eat a 3 course meal and still ask for dessert. However, I also have a 16 year old who is a grazer due to some medical issues. She eats small portions all day long, but would never eat enough at a meal to justify the cost of some of the buffets and AYCTE places. I have done some research, looked at menus, etc and planned our meals knowing this. We do have one buffet, as it was a request from DH, but all others are regular TS meals so that my daughter can order off the kids menu or only get an appetizer or soup. For the buffet, I will just go in knowing that she will be charged adult prices and likely only eat fruit and maybe half a waffle... :/ But, that's the way it is...

 

[cutigerlady]

We ate at the Brown Derby a few weeks ago with the F package and my 10 year old son was charged the kid's meal price. I honestly didn't even think about it while we were there! At the podium they had me confirm that I had two adults and 2 children. Our reservation was made online and was linked to my Disney Experience account which had his tickets showing he was 10. We didn't have a dining plan, used out TiW card. He actually has a big appetite, and the majority of the trip he ate adult meals anyway. However, I did think the price for an adult meal with the three courses was going to be too much for him, so he ordered the kids meal at the Brown Derby. It worked out great because he wanted the grouper without the sauce, which the kid's meal came that way.

I also learned on this trip that if you child doesn't want dessert, they can deduct that from the kid's meal price at a table service place where it is included in the meal! My picky 5 year old who loves sweets got tired of getting dessert every night.

 

[schalliol]

This is great to know. I'm glad you lucked out there, and I don't assume that's going to be the normal case.

I'd love to learn more about backing out desserts from the table service place. I can't imagine I could get away with that with the kids, but I do have a 3 year old and I'm sure that with no left overs, we'll be pretty wasteful.

 

[supersnoop]

We ate at the Brown Derby a few weeks ago with the F package and my 10 year old son was charged the kid's meal price. I honestly didn't even think about it while we were there! At the podium they had me confirm that I had two adults and 2 children. Our reservation was made online and was linked to my Disney Experience account which had his tickets showing he was 10. We didn't have a dining plan, used out TiW card. He actually has a big appetite, and the majority of the trip he ate adult meals anyway. However, I did think the price for an adult meal with the three courses was going to be too much for him, so he ordered the kids meal at the Brown Derby. It worked out great because he wanted the grouper without the sauce, which the kid's meal came that way.

I also learned on this trip that if you child doesn't want dessert, they can deduct that from the kid's meal price at a table service place where it is included in the meal! My picky 5 year old who loves sweets got tired of getting dessert every night.

I'm trying to follow your experience, but I'm getting confused. Can you clarify a few things?
1. Are you sure you did the Fantasmic package? Did you receive the tickets?
2. when you "confirmed" your party at the podium, did you say the 10 year old was a "child?"
3.Did you use the TiW discount?

TiW isn't valid for package meals. Pricing would be based on how old you told them the child was. If you weren't on the package, then it really doesn't matter.

 

[TheRustyScupper]

1

I have a very small girl who is a year outside the kid prices for most restaurants. She eats very little. Now, for buffet restaurants, I understand they'll want to charge her full price (as I just stomached for a Spirit of Aloha reservation for her), and she has full price tickets, etc.

If I book ADRs with her as one of the 5 in our party for a non-buffet restaurant, can she choose a kid meal? For example, I have the Brown Derby Fantasmic booked for $69.23 per adult, and she and we would prefer the $45.80 less kids meal. Thanks!

{MOVING FLAME PROOF SUIT FROM DRAWER TO SHOULDERS}
1) So, you want to deliberately cheat the system? :
2) If the kid is over 9-years-old, he/she needs to pay the adult price.
3) Those-are-the rules . . . PERIOD.
4) As an option, there is always Universal or Six Flags.
5) Disney needs to "average out" the eating of age groups.
. . . some kids eat more for their age
. . . some kids eat less for their age
. . . but, the average is the average
6) Disney has an army of statisticians to prove their assumptions
. . . I have actually showed several guys/gals how to write a spreadsheet to do some of the analysis
. . . and, yes, I have actually taught EXCEL/Lotus formulas and regression analysis

7) But, to answer your question, she will be charged as an adult . . . as so she should be.

NOTE1: At one time, there were food classifications of Infant (under 3-years-old), child/children (3-9 years old), "junior" (10-17 years -old), adult (over 17-years-old). When they changed , there was not an outcry, so they left it at three ages (infant, child, adult). In fact, the "junior" classification still shows up in the computer (although we NEVER tell the guest this), but the guest is simply priced as an adult.

NOTE2: I do not want to seem harsh/crass, but trying to get someone charged less than they should be charged is (to me) cheating.
{REPLACING FLAME PROOF SUIT BACK TO STORAGE}